What denominations believe in the Rapture?

[tall73]

The phrase “dead in Christ” if read exegetically clearly refers to those who are reposed in Abraham’s Bosom. And being that the souls of the deceased do rise to meet God and are protected by angels as they pass through the aerial realm, which is the abode of our adversary the devil, the “prince of the power of the air”, this is extremely important.

Would it be the "souls" of the deceased?

It sounds like the righteous now go to be with the Lord:

Php 1:21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Php 1:22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell.
Php 1:23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Php 1:24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

If that is the case then this portion of 1 Thess. 4 suggests Jesus brings with Him those who have fallen asleep from heaven:

1Th 4:14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

And this part would relate to the resurrection of the body:

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

Referenced in:

1Co 15:20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
1Co 15:21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.


1Co 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

(notice the parallel of the trumpet of God in the two passages)


Rom 8:23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Rom 8:24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?

 

[RileyG]

@tall73 do any of those passages refer to the rapture as understood today?

 

[tall73]

@tall73 do any of those passages refer to the rapture as understood today?

I am noting that 1 Thes. 4 and I Corinthians 15 seem to be parallel and appear to involve resurrection.

People use the term rapture for all kinds of things. So I can't speak to all of that.

 

[ewq1938]

Since my tradition (Roman Catholic) does not teach rapture, I actually do not know. I am not sure how to correctly respond.

I looked at some Catholic resources and they do believe in a post-trib rapture:

Do Catholics believe in the rapture?

"Strictly speaking, Catholics do believe in a form of “rapture:” a bodily assumption into heaven of all the faithful, both living and dead, at Jesus' second and final coming and judgement. This will be preceded by the appearance of the Antichrist and an associated period of intense persecution of Christians known as the tribulation."

Do Catholics believe in the Rapture?

"According to Paul, at the appointed time and as quickly as “a blink of an eye” (1 Cor. 15:52), the dead would rise. Then the living would be snatched up or carried off immediately afterward in order to meet Christ in the clouds (1 Thess. 4:16-17). In the Vulgate, the early Latin Bible, the word used for God’s plucking us up into the sky was rapiemur, from which we derive the word “rapture.” To understand what would happen next, we must grasp the ancient idea of parousia."

 

[Servant78]

There is a great miss teaching about the rapture and that is that believers are taken to heaven. But that is not Biblically true, no one is raptured to heaven. They meet the Messiah in the air/clouds where they stay for 7 years during the tribulation. Before returning with the Messiah at the end of the tribulation.

Revelation 7 shows us the great multitude of raptured saints in heaven while on earth the 144000 lost tribe of Israel assigned to replace the church as servants of God at the fullness of gentiles.

Since my tradition (Roman Catholic) does not teach rapture, I actually do not know. I am not sure how to correctly respond.

 

[The Liturgist]

Would it be the "souls" of the deceased?

It sounds like the righteous now go to be with the Lord:

Php 1:21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.
Php 1:22 If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell.
Php 1:23 I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
Php 1:24 But to remain in the flesh is more necessary on your account.

If that is the case then this portion of 1 Thess. 4 suggests Jesus brings with Him those who have fallen asleep from heaven:

1Th 4:14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

And this part would relate to the resurrection of the body:

1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.

Referenced in:

1Co 15:20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
1Co 15:21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.


1Co 15:52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.

(notice the parallel of the trumpet of God in the two passages)


Rom 8:23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Rom 8:24 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees?

I think the answer to all of your questions is a resounding “yes.” It must also be stressed that this is not the doctrine of the rapture as introduced by John Nelson Darby.

 

[The Liturgist]

@tall73 do any of those passages refer to the rapture as understood today?

I am noting that 1 Thes. 4 and I Corinthians 15 seem to be parallel and appear to involve resurrection.

People use the term rapture for all kinds of things. So I can't speak to all of that.

These refer to the general resurrection but not the 19th century Darbyite doctrine of the Rapture, which as @ewq1938 pointed out, is not accepted by Roman Catholics (or traditional churches more broadly, such as Lutherans, most Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians and other Protestant denominations, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Old Catholics, etc).

 

[The Liturgist]

Revelation 7 shows us the great multitude of raptured saints in heaven while on earth the 144000 lost tribe of Israel assigned to replace the church as servants of God at the fullness of gentiles

Respectfully, that is just one interpretation, and it is neither the most ancient nor widely held interpretation of that passage.

 

[d taylor]

Revelation 7 shows us the great multitude of raptured saints in heaven while on earth the 144000 lost tribe of Israel assigned to replace the church as servants of God at the fullness of gentiles.

I believe you are applying the idea that these are raptured. One could as easily state these people have been martyred

 

[Brian Mcnamee]

Fascinating! I didn't know that. I know very little about SDA other than they were founded by a woman and celebrate the sabbath on Saturday. (I am getting off topic...)

7th day has the rapture at the end of the tribulation and in heaven during the 1000 years and not reigning with Jesus on earth. They also have Sun Sabbath as the mark of the beast.

 

[Maria Billingsley]

Self-explanatory. I know Pentecostals do.

I'm not sure which denomination is amillennial with the rapture on the last day in a twinkle of an eye. Please enlighten me.

 

[Brian Mcnamee]

Since my tradition (Roman Catholic) does not teach rapture, I actually do not know. I am not sure how to correctly respond.

Jesus notes that there will come a time when mens hearts will fail them for fear of what is coming and he told the believers to pray always you are counted worthy to escape these things and to be standing before the son of man. Now this is where the debate should be engaged as to wether this is all historically settled or is yet future. For in Rev 3 the church of Philadelphia is told God will keep them from the hour that is coming to test the hole world. When we get to the seal judgments we see judgments that cover the earth and not just Israel. The day of vengeance in Isaiah 61 describes the great accomplishment in that day and it is Israel and Jews being blessed not wiped out. The kingdom of God can only come one time or have a single beginning and the idea of a spiritual kingdom does not exclude all the passages that talk about the literal kingdom. This is where there is a mountain of evidence that supports futurism. If you care to consider some of these passages I can provide them and the straightforward interpretation is in the text. With allegories you have to be led down a breadcrumb path to hold to it and as we look out at real time events there is a global government coming, and the financial crisis that will bring about global hyperinflation. People have a normalcy bias and think oh all this stuff will back off and return to somewhat normal. I disagree and see a days wage for a quart of wheat and peace taken from the earth. it is the order out of chaos or story of the phoenix that is being played out and the idea of being repented and serving the LORD is the unifying idea for all of us no matter our opinion on the rapture. But I pray that God would cover me like those in the passover and keep me from that hour that is coming upon the earth and the glorious hope to be standing before the son of man.
finally the passage in 1 These 4 most omit the last thought
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive andremain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

As we are watching the world go like the days of Sodom and the dike about to break these words of the promise are a great comfort to me. And we are told to share them with others. Now if we have to go through the whole tribulation we might as well go of the grid now and hope to escape rather than to pray to escape as we are not told to flee but to occupy until the LORD comes.

 

[Brian Mcnamee]

Jesus notes that there will come a time when mens hearts will fail them for fear of what is coming and he told the believers to pray always you are counted worthy to escape these things and to be standing before the son of man. Now this is where the debate should be engaged as to wether this is all historically settled or is yet future. For in Rev 3 the church of Philadelphia is told God will keep them from the hour that is coming to test the hole world. When we get to the seal judgments we see judgments that cover the earth and not just Israel. The day of vengeance in Isaiah 61 describes the great accomplishment in that day and it is Israel and Jews being blessed not wiped out. The kingdom of God can only come one time or have a single beginning and the idea of a spiritual kingdom does not exclude all the passages that talk about the literal kingdom. This is where there is a mountain of evidence that supports futurism. If you care to consider some of these passages I can provide them and the straightforward interpretation is in the text. With allegories you have to be led down a breadcrumb path to hold to it and as we look out at real time events there is a global government coming, and the financial crisis that will bring about global hyperinflation. People have a normalcy bias and think oh all this stuff will back off and return to somewhat normal. I disagree and see a days wage for a quart of wheat and peace taken from the earth. it is the order out of chaos or story of the phoenix that is being played out and the idea of being repented and serving the LORD is the unifying idea for all of us no matter our opinion on the rapture. But I pray that God would cover me like those in the passover and keep me from that hour that is coming upon the earth and the glorious hope to be standing before the son of man.
finally the passage in 1 These 4 most omit the last thought
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive andremain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

As we are watching the world go like the days of Sodom and the dike about to break these words of the promise are a great comfort to me. And we are told to share them with others. Now if we have to go through the whole tribulation we might as well go of the grid now and hope to escape rather than to pray to escape as we are not told to flee but to occupy until the LORD comes.

The 2nd coming and the rapture is a lot like Captain Kirk in Star Trek where the people on the planet can be in grave danger and the captain at the last moment beams them up to the ship and you could say that the captain came and saved them. Then another crisis is going on that same planet and instead of beaming people up Kirk comes down himself with a weapon or plan that defeats the enemy and that would be the 2nd coming when he physically appears. In scripture life continues clearly after the LORD comes and his dominion is over the whole earth and He reigns from Jerusalem.

 

[RileyG]

I'm not sure which denomination is amillennial with the rapture on the last day in a twinkle of an eye. Please enlighten me.

I’m not sure what that means

 

[BobRyan]

If I were you, I would start with the Rapture construct of John Nelson Darby and use that to evaluate the other claims. Given that the Adventist doctrines include Soul Sleep, an Investigative Judgement, Annhilationism, and the conflation of St. Michael the Archangel with Christ our Lord and God the Son, who the early church always maintained were separate, their conceptualization of the eschatology to which the rapture is commonly associated (premillenial dispensationalism, basically the story you find in the Left Behind novels) is likely to be somewhat distinct from the rest.

No doubt SDAs hold to some doctrines you do not agree with but that is no reason to conflate every difference you have with them -- the 1 Thess 4:13-18 rapture also described in Matt 24:29-31 -- unless you can show that the sleep state in 1 Thess 4:13-18 needs to be "deleted" to have the rapture.

1 Thess 4:13-18
13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.

 

[BobRyan]

These refer to the general resurrection but not the 19th century Darbyite doctrine of the Rapture, which as @ewq1938 pointed out, is not accepted by Roman Catholics (or traditional churches more broadly, such as Lutherans, most Anglicans, Methodists, Presbyterians and other Protestant denominations, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Old Catholics, etc).

Some of those are listed as evangelical.

So back to my question to you - what denomination claims Jesus comes to take the saints to heaven at the end of the world -- ie the rapture as affirmed by Evangelical groups - that is not evangelical?? You have claimed this is almost all denominations in a recent post here - and do not explain how that can possibly be.

 

[DragonFox91]

The Baptist churches I attend believe in it. I myself am not well-studied in eschatology though.

The RCA churches I've attended don't teach it. They largely teach Revelation is too mysterious & symbolic for us to really understand other than the new heaven & the new earth & God judging the wicked all some day.

 

[BobRyan]

JSRG said: ↑
Can you clarify exactly what you mean by "the rapture"?

Since my tradition (Roman Catholic) does not teach rapture, I actually do not know. I am not sure how to correctly respond.

If you look at any group that formally declares (official declares) they believe in the eschatalogical doctrine of the rapture - they will always quote John 14:1-3 and 1 Thess 4:13-18

 

[BobRyan]

The Baptist churches I attend believe in it. I'm not well-studied in eschatology though.

I agree that baptists do teach it and I am not ware of any Baptist denomination that does not teach it

 

[BobRyan]

The bible speaks of it:

1Th_4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:

good point.